The Risks of Adapting Popular Book Series Into TV Shows

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Companies should carefully consider the risks before turning a popular book series into a TV show. Adapting books for the screen isn’t new – it’s been common for years, traditionally with movies. But recently, TV has become the preferred way to adapt books, as the longer format allows for more detailed and creative storytelling.

TV adaptations of popular books haven’t been the automatic hits that many companies, like Netflix, expected. The idea was that built-in fan bases would guarantee an audience, but several large-scale projects have struggled, leading to cancellations or major issues.

Netflix provides a clear example of this problem. While the Shadow and Bone books were very popular, the TV series adaptation failed to gain traction. Similarly, The Witcher had a built-in audience thanks to its established fanbase from the books and video games, but the series has proven to be quite controversial. These examples, and others like them, show a significant risk that Netflix should now avoid.

Adapting Popular Book Series Into TV Shows Comes With A Major Risk

While TV shows based on popular books used to almost always succeed, that’s no longer true. Many series start strong with high viewership in their first season, but quickly lose viewers after that. This suggests that while book fans initially watch to see their favorite stories adapted, something about the show isn’t keeping them interested long-term.

It’s easy to see why book-to-TV adaptations often disappoint. Translating a story from page to screen almost always requires changes, and screenwriters usually add their own ideas. This often frustrates fans of the original books, leading them to lose interest in the show as it goes on.

Adapting Lesser-Known Books To TV May Be The Best Bet Going Forward

Whenever a beloved book series is announced to be adapted for television, it’s initially thrilling. Unfortunately, dedicated readers are often let down. It’s become apparent that many TV adaptations prioritize capitalizing on established fan communities rather than faithfully recreating the original stories.

Adapting book series into movies or TV shows can be really successful, but there have been enough failures to show that studios should be more cautious. While popular books offer great stories, they also come with dedicated fans who are hard to satisfy. It might be smarter to focus on adapting lesser-known books that have interesting ideas – that could be the key to success.

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2025-11-16 04:27